Just Love Me
by ouji-san
Summary: Kyouya has been ordered to have Haruhi fall in love with him before a certain period of time. He will do whatever it takes to acquire this goal, even if it means stealing her away. Follows some themes from Beauty and the Beast.
1. Tag, You're Mine

_Update July 06, 2009:_

_Oh my. I've made so many mistakes in this chapter. I corrected all the ones I could find._

_Update June 30, 2009:_

_I actually edited part of the story to make it less OOC. Enjoy!_

_A/N: _

_Hi guys! I hope you enjoy this story as much as I loved writing it!_

_DISCLAIMER: Ouran High School Host Club DOES NOT belong to me. All characters do not belong to me._

_Beta'd by my friend Kathy. Ilu Kathy. _

**

* * *

  
**

"You will marry Haruhi Fujioka. If you wish to defy me, I will take everything from you. Do you understand these circumstances?"

"Yes, Otou-san."

_She'll never love me._

"Now off with you."

"Yes… Otou-san."

---

The fall season had arrived earlier in Japan this year then anticipated.

Brilliant, brittle leaves were swaying loosely from the multi-colored trees. Ones that had already fallen from the trees were making a crispy crackling noise under the tiny feet of Haruhi Fujioka as she glided over them in a sincere attempt to arrive home in a timely matter to fix dinner for her father. The grocery bags swinging from her hands were severely weighing her down, the plastic material mercilessly forming creases at the bases of her fingers. She winced slightly while tromping up the stairs to her father's apartment.

_'Father works so hard.'_ Haruhi thought about her cross-dressing dad admiringly to herself. She loved and respected her father very much and appreciated everything he had done for her. Ever since her mother passed away, she took to doing the laundry, cooking and other household chores as a subtle way of thanking her father for all of his kindness, never asking for anything in return or bothered her father with her own problems. She was a model daughter, the kind of attribute everyone wanted for his or her own family. Only it bothered Ranka tremendously to see his daughter living this way.

Mr. Fujioka would always feel guilty for Haruhi throwing herself into the world of adults while she was so young. Nevertheless, he would always go out of his way to show how grateful he was that Haruhi would always put herself aside to help her father.

When Haruhi reached the entry way, she set the shopping bags down for a moment, bringing her hands up to her neck and slipping off the key that was hanging from her necklace. She placed the key into the door knob and twisted her wrist to the left, pushing the door open. Propping her foot up against the door, she bent over, extending her arms downward to hoist the grocery bags back up.

"I'm home." Haruhi murmured, removing her shoes and rushing to the kitchen, practically thrusting the bags onto the floor. She paused for a second, wiping away the beads of sweat that had formed.

"I'm worried about this."

"Otou-san?" Haruhi began to totter in the direction of her father's distant voice. She stopped at a nearby room and gingerly pressed her ear to the door, careful not to make the slightest sound.

"I assure you that it burdens me greatly to worry you."

Haruhi's eyebrows pressed together. The second voice that she had heard sounded oddly familiar. She pressed her ear a little closer.

"I hope you will trust me."

"Kyouya-senpai?" She whispered faintly when upon figuring out the owner of the second voice.

She removed the ear from the door and rapped her knuckles on it softly.

The room on the other side went silent. After a few moments, she heard her father's voice again.

"Come on in, Haruhi!" Mr. Fujioka piped. Haruhi sucked down a breath before opening the door cautiously.

"Otou-san? Why is-" The inquiry died in her mouth when a hand closed tightly around her wrist and commenced to yank her right back out the door she had just previously entered.

"We're leaving, Haruhi."

She locked her gaze onto the perpetrator who was rudely dragging her out of her own residence.

"K-Kyouya-senpai?!"

"Bye. Haruhi!" Her father waved, but did not move from the place where he resided.

"Let go of me!" Haruhi began to struggle against Kyouya's firm grasp. She flailed her feet around desperately, kicking at his shins and any other place she could reach. The floundering girl landed a nice punch squarely in his gut. He grunted smartly and readjusted his death grip around her waist and proceeded to extract her from the room and bursting through the front door, too preoccupied to shut it on his way out.

"Put me down this instant!" Haruhi yelled, clinging onto the railing for dear life. Kyouya pried her hands off of the support and hauled her down the stairs with all of his capability. At the end of the platform was a sleek, jet-black limo, which the driver, Tachibana kindly opened for Kyouya while he not so kindly shoved her into the back seat roughly and slammed the car door. He darted up to the front seats and quickly slid into shotgun.

"Drive."

The driver put the car into the gear quickly.

"Pardon. It is not my place to ask you this, but are you sure this is the way you should have gone about this? The young maiden must be extremely angry."

"I am absolutely, one-hundred percent positive that this is the only way I could have gone about this situation." Kyouya responded, pushing up his glasses; obviously exhausted.

Haruhi was making the whole limo move with her thumping around.

"_Lousy bastard!_" They heard her screech. _"Asshole!"_

Tachibana chuckled. "I take it that she completely loathes you now."

"Perhaps, however that is a set-back I am planning on amending immediately."

"Forgive me for asking, but how are you going to do that?"

"I have not the slightest idea. Everything will work itself out. You'll see." Kyouya answered honestly and hopefully, lacing his fingers behinds his head and closing his eyes despite the noise coming from the back seat. "You'll see."

Fifteen minutes had passed by sluggishly as Kyouya was patiently waiting in the front seat for Haruhi to calm herself down. At thirty minutes, he believed that her anger had subsided tremendously and eventually the whole car was silent. Kyouya slid his fingers into the groove of the handle and opened the automobile door swiftly; he walked around to the rear of the limo, and then opened Haruhi's door.

"Are you quite done?" He examined the limp, virtually lifeless body that was slumped over the comfortable material of the backseat. He analyzed Haruhi more closely and found her asleep, her eyes shut and her smooth, pink lips hanging open; she could give no response to his inquiry. A pang of guilt went through his heart. Kyouya extended his lengthy arms, tugging Haruhi out of the backseat and hoisted her up into them, cradling her like an infant.

"You're cute when you're sleeping, Haruhi." He spoke softly, looking down at her and smiling crookedly.

He brought her up to the largest guest room in the Ootori mansion and laid her down gingerly on the plump, cushy bed. He tucked Haruhi in snugly, and brushed the almond brown, fluffy strands of hair out of her closed eyes.

"_Goodnight." _Kyouya whispered. With that, he planted a gentle kiss on her forehead and walked silently out of the room.

_I'm not doing this because I have to, Haruhi. I've realized this just now. _


	2. I'd Rather Be Reading

_A/N DFLJLDSJF. I am so sorry, guys!! I meant to post this chapter before Christmas, but I was extremely busy! That, and we had a blackout for three days. Ugh._

_Anyways, thank you Kathy for being my beta (even though she did not catch the mistakes in my last one) and FORCING ME to complete this chapter. If it wasn't for her, this chapter might have been finished at a slower rate. _

_Also, big thanks to my reviewers! I honestly never thought I would get any._

_Er. I am not up to date on my Japanese honorifics. Please excuse any mistakes or notify me for future reference._

_And I finally found out how to use a line break.  
_

_'__lolexample' (Italics) Indicate thoughts._

_"_lolexample_" Indicates speech. _

_Please enjoy this chapter since I have been stressing about it for quite a long time. ;D_

_Oh, and happy New Year!_

* * *

"YOU DID WHAT?!" The Host King screeched, unpleasantly.

"I took Haruhi into my own residence."

"That does not make any sense!"

"I'm certainly not an idiot, I have my reasons" Kyouya hissed testily at the phone, taking precaution not to wake a certain brunette from her well-deserved slumber.

"I am disgusted, Mother!! Daddy wants you to give Haruhi back to her own father!! Or at least give her to me so I can keep her instead of you."

"Absolutely not."

"Then let her go back to her apartment!"

"No."

"You're up to something suspicious, Kyouya-kun, and I intend to find out!"

"You go do that. Good day."

"No-wait! Kyou-"

_Click._

Kyouya sighed and brought his fingers up to his temples, massaging them in small, even circles.

He had almost given up Haruhi once, following the unwritten laws of friendship and etiquette. Kyouya was not about to let that same mistake happen again. As much as he had deep gratitude and affection towards Tamaki, he was absolutely not going to give up the one thing that mattered in his life at the moment. The first person he actually felt anything for and the one person that he needed currently.

"Pst! Kyouya-san?" The sound of his sister, Fuyumi's voice interrupted his slightly selfish thoughts. Fuyumi had come over to visit for the week.

"What is it now, Oneechan?"

"The girl."

"What about her?"

"She's awake."

Kyouya adjusted his glasses, somewhat relieved. "In that case, would you do me a favor?"

"Yes, of course!"

"Courteously introduce yourself, invite her for some dinner in the dining room and have her change into something…decent."

A fleeting smile danced slyly across the corners of Fuyumi's petite lips.

"Absolutely."

'_You go get 'em, little brother!_'

----

The soft rays of the moon had replaced the feeble light of dusk once illuminating between the curtains in the spare room of the Ohtori mansion. A tiny brunette—the current residence of the room, rustled unsettled in her sleep. The girl paused a moment before cracking her eyes open. In a matter of seconds, she flung up into a sitting position whilst reality washed back over her.

'_Who am I?'_

'Haruhi Fujioka'

'_Where am I?'_

'Looks like a bedroom of some sorts. Most likely relating to Ootori, Kyouya.'

'_What day is it?'_

'Friday night, perhaps Saturday morning.'

'_Why am I here?'_

Haruhi pinched the bridge of her nose in result of a pounding headache.

The muscles flexing under the pale skin of her limp arm were sore and aching from the evening's exertion. Despite being forced out of the comfort her own home and waking up in an unfamiliar place, she could not help but disperse those thoughts and instead contemplate about her own father. Now that Haruhi was away, Mr. Fujioka would have to work four times as hard to keep the apartment up and running and not being able to know what her father was doing at the moment was aggravating Haruhi immensely. Fortunately, before she could distress any longer, a soft rapping noise sounding from the door snatched her worrisome thoughts away

"…Come in?" Haruhi was not sure how to respond. This room technically wasn't really hers and she felt awkward giving someone permission to enter something that she didn't posses.

The blinding light of the hallway flooded through the pitch-black room as an illuminated feminine hand gently pushed the door ajar. Haruhi used the crook of her arm to shield her unprepared eyes.

"Hey." A voice said softly. "Ooh, sorry."

"It's alright." Haruhi mumbled, bringing her arm down and squinting her watery eyes.

"You're Haruhi, I was told." The woman bowed slightly before sitting down on the edge of the bed and shaking her head slowly. "I'm Fuyumi…I'm terribly sorry we're meeting like this."

"It's not your fault."

"I know. It's just that—never mind." She smiled. "It's not that bad here, you know."

"It's not? I wouldn't know."

Fuyumi chuckled.

"There are plenty of clothes here, and food. You'll be safe."

"You intend on keeping me here?" The brunette inquired.

"Me? Oh heavens no. But—"

"Kyouya?" A frown disgraced the lips of Haruhi.

Fuyumi's lips tugged into a small frown. She tucked strands of her raven hair behind her ear and changed the subject rapidly.

"How about you open that closet over there and pick out a dress to wear?"

"What? Why on Earth would I do something like that at this hour?"

Fuyumi weighed the benefits and consequences of being blunt or telling the truth whilst leaving out the details. She chose the latter.

"A certain person wishes to greet you into our home."

"And this person is—"

"—A secret."

Haruhi sighed, sliding off the bed and slumping off towards the closet not bothering to ask any more questions. When inside, she flicked the light on carefully.

"…Wow." She was awestruck. The closet was about the size of her kitchen and twice as stocked. Rows and rows of breathtaking clothes were placed carefully on their hangers. None of them suited her fancy, though. They were much too elegant.

Haruhi scanned the dresses with her thumb pressed neatly in the crease of her lips. Reluctantly, she plucked a simple black dress and matching shoes off of a rack and changed quickly. After examining her profile in the mirror, Haruhi scoffed. She stepped out of the closet to meet a disgruntled Fuyumi whose mouth was pressed into a thin, tight line.

"You're wearing that." She expressed the sentence in more of a statement as opposed to an inquiry.

"I think it is a lovely dress."

"Well, it is. However, I thought perhaps you wanted to wear something more…never mind. You look fine." Fuyumi smiled earnestly. "You'd better get going. The dining room is just to the right of the end of the stairs. Do you need help finding it?"

"No, I will be fine. Thank you." Haruhi smiled back and stumbled off towards the door in her high heels. Fuyumi giggled and waved to her retreating silhouette.

----

Haruhi, who had been having a hell of a time walking down the stairs in heels, took off the offending shoes and walked the rest of the way down in her bare feet. She continued bare footed tiptoeing through the polished floors of the entry way. _'Whoever this person is can deal with my feet if they see me.'_ She reasoned. _'Besides, I didn't ask to be here.'_ Once in the dining room, she slipped her heels back on in order to at least be a little bit polite and took a seat quietly in the nearest chair at the end of the table.

'_I must be early.' _ Haruhi concluded and let her gaze wander around the dining room. A glistening chandelier hung proudly from the center of the raised ceiling. Never before had she been in a house so lavish as this one, however, she would much rather be in her own apartment with her father.

The soft clicking sound of a door being pushed open broke through the stillness and caught Haruhi's attention. She shot up out of her chair immediately as if she were a Jack-in-the-Box.

"Ah, Haruhi. Take a seat."

That particular firm command was issued in a familiar voice that Haruhi recognized all too well.


	3. Insomnia

_A/N Sorry for delay. School got hectic and this story was in bad shape. _

_To Sakura Lisel: I have taken it upon myself to edit the entire story for better reasoning. And actually, Haruhi would have no say in the matter. ;) She never really does, does she? And it is not past time her debt is over. Her debt should be paid off before her graduation, which has not happened yet. If you missed the last part at the end of the first chapter, Kyouya has other motives. _

_Thank you to all my reviewers! You guys rock. Please tell me if I make any mistakes in this chapter.  
_

_I added a little humor into my story this time! Hope it makes up for all the drama._

_

* * *

  
_

"Kyouya-senpai!" Haruhi instinctively shot up from her chair

"Ah, Haruhi take a seat." Kyouya smiled lopsidedly as he gestured for the brunette to sit down.

"Why—"

"Take a seat."

Haruhi blinked at the firmness of the command before plopping back into her seat. In all seriousness, she was considering turning around and walking right out of the room but decided that it would not be the best idea. Kyouya walked around the table and seated himself parallel from the brunette, folding his hands under his chin.

Before either one of them had the chance to say something, a set of doors were pushed open and an array of dishes were placed in front of Haruhi by servants. Kyouya had specifically requested to the chef that her favorite ootoro and 'fancy tuna' be prepared in order to lighten her attitude, however Haruhi did not touch the food.

"I am not hungry." The girl commented flatly, crossing her arms and eyeing the plate in front of her. Her stomach growled against her own will.

"Suit yourself, then." Kyouya chuckled and leaned back in his chair. "I suppose I owe you an explanation." Haruhi nodded. Kyouya took out an envelope out of his pocket, sliding it across the table before getting up out of his seat.

"This letter came in an hour ago from your father. I will see you tomorrow in the garden." With that, he smiled and then exited the room, leaving the brunette by her lonesome. Haruhi listened silently to his footsteps fading away. After she was sure Kyouya had left, she practically inhaled all of the food on the table

---

With the letter that Kyouya had given her in hand, Haruhi slipped off of her chair and was escorted back into her temporary living quarters. She set the letter onto the nightstand and collapsed on her soft, plushy bed, poking her stomach tenderly. The brunette remained idle for a couple of minutes before resuming an upright position and reaching her slender arm towards the letter from her father once more. Once the envelope was opened and the letter (which was covered in doodles) was pulled out, she began to read slowly.

_Haruhi--_

_Daddy misses you so much!!! Kyouya came over to the apartment unexpectedly while daddy was getting ready for work and requested that he take you into his care for a few weeks. He also assured me that you would be safe and he would tell you what was going on. Daddy tried to tell him no but Daddy only wants the best for his little angel. Surely you would rather spend time in a mansion with a handsome young man rather then at home with your old father! Daddy loves you!!!_

_--Your ONE and ONLY father_

_P.S. That phony blonde-haired idiot kept calling here so I told him where you were and that he should jump off a cliff. _

Haruhi chuckled, managing to blink back the moistness that was beginning to form in her eyes before casting the letter aside. "I wonder what Tamaki is doing right now," she said out loud, wishing that things could go back to normal.

---

Tamaki sneezed. Not being able to sleep, he took to calling the rest of the Host Club's members. In the beginning, he intended not to call them and keep the whole thing under wraps. However, Tamaki was terrible at keeping secrets and caved eventually, reasoning that everyone had the right to know.

First on the list was Mori.

"MORI-SENPAI!!! The evil Kyouya has kidnapped my daughter!" Tamaki screamed at the phone.

"Ah."

"…Okay I'll see you Monday."

The phone call to Hunny went completely off subject.

"Hunny-senpai! Kyouya has stolen Haruhi away!" Tamaki yelled at the phone.

"Wahhh! Now who are Usa-chan and I going to eat cake with? Cake. Cake sounds nice right now. Maybe I can have ten cakes and then I'll have plenty to share with Usa-chan."

"…Goodnight Hunny-senpai."

His third contact did not go exactly as planned

"Emergency! Kyouya has taken Haruhi into his evil clutches!"

"This _is_ Kyouya, you idiot."

"Well in that case, give--!" Tamaki was not able to finish his sentence seeing as the other line went dead.

Last but not least, Tamaki decided to call the twins.

"So let me get this straight." Hikaru mumbled, annoyed that he had been woken up. "Kyouya went and took Haruhi from her apartment?"

"Yes! That is exactly what I'm trying to tell you!"

"Yeah. Okay. Goodnight, Lord."

"Goodnight! Hey, wait! Don't you hang up—" _Click_

Tamaki stared at his phone angrily and snapped it shut. Deciding that he should try to sleep again, he grabbed Kuma-chan and climbed into bed.

"I wonder what Kyouya and Haruhi are doing now. That bespectacled bastard is probably playing commoners games and having fun with MY daughter!!!"

----

Ranka tossed and turned in his bed, clenching his fists.

'_For some reason, I really feel like beating up a blonde-haired airhead._

----

Kyouya was seated at his desk, rubbing his nose with a tissue. In the past half hour, he had sneezed a good amount of times and was getting pretty fed up.

'_Must be Tamaki throwing around my name on the telephone.'_

As he threw the tissue away in a nearby waste bin, his eye caught a framed picture of the Host Club that they had taken a couple of months back. Kyouya was not one for being sentimental, however he quite liked the picture. To the far right of the photograph was Mori with Hunny on his shoulders. Mori had a bit of cake on his head from the treat that Hunny held in his possession. In the middle was Haruhi wearing a large, sincere smile and on either side of her were Tamaki and himself laying a hand on her shoulders. Tamaki was not quite ready for the photo and was frowning while his eyes were closed. Kyouya himself looked pretty annoyed by the noise level. In the back of Haruhi were the twins, making bunny ears while wearing cheesy grins on their faces. This was one of the few photos that Kyouya possessed that earnestly displayed the characteristics of each individual person of the Host Club. It was also one of the photographs that actually meant anything to him.

Smiling to himself, Kyouya turned off his desk light and headed off to bed.

* * *

_Hey, my birthday is on the eighteenth on July! Please review. ;D_


	4. Alere Flammam

**A/N:**

**Kyouya is a jerk, eh? Hopefully you'll still love him after this chapter. From this point on, he will try to control his temper. **_**Temper. **_**Very important, people.**

**Anywho, I'm sorry for not adding this chapter sooner. I had 4/5 of this chapter typed up a while ago and I just finished it. I realize that I am a terrible authoress. Don't hurt me.**

Friday night had given way to Saturday morning as a stunning sun rose from its slumber, lighting up the sky like a cheerful smile on a child. The employees of the Ootori household were already at their assigned posts, flitting about the mansion. The maid grabbed a fistful of Silk curtains and tugged them back to light into a certain brunette's room to rouse her from sleep.

"Miss." The maid spoke politely as Haruhi sat upwards, rubbing the tiredness from her eyes. She blinked a couple of times before turning towards the uniformed woman.

"I have orders to get you up and ready for your breakfast."

Haruhi inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of delicious warm bread and fruit. Her stomach rumbled as she slid off of the bed and was ushered into the closet where a small team of women was there to dress her for the day.

"Is this really necessary?" The brunette mumbled rubbing her eyes as a nice, bright dress was picked out for her. She quickly crossed her arms over her chest in horror as a woman began to tug off her shirt. "I can dress myself, you know!" Haruhi reluctantly gave in as the woman shook her head gently and proceeded to undress her.

Once Haruhi had been dressed, her makeup was done and she was escorted into the dining room. On the table was a feast fit to feed a whole family for a week, let alone solely Haruhi. Her gaze traveled upwards from the food and saw Fuyumi waving at her from across the table with a large smile on her face.

"Haruhi! Come sit down!" She gestured for the brunette to sit down and Haruhi complied.

"How did you sleep?" Fuyumi asked when Haruhi had settled in her seat.

"Fine." Haruhi replied. The answer was not entirely true. Throughout the night she had been tossing and turning in her bed, which had resulted in a lack of adequate sleep. But then again, how well can one rest their head properly at night when ones father was at home without them?

Fuyumi giggled at the one-word answer. "That's certainly good to hear!"

Haruhi nodded and lifted up her fork, loaded with pancakes.

"Itadakimasu."

Once the brunette could not bear to stomach another bite, she wiped off her mouth with an expensive looking napkin. She looked down at the napkin and grimaced.

'_How much is this going to add to my debt?' _Haruhi asked herself bitterly. '_Speaking of debts…'_ "Where's Kyouya-senpai?"

"Oh!" Fuyumi piped, getting up from her seat. "He's in the garden, right now. Here, let me take you there."

"He's up this early?" Haruhi asked nervously and she rose from her own chair. Fuyumi laughed.

"Yes, he's up rather early this morning."

The brunette frowned. She had once spent the day with an early-awoken Kyouya at a department store because of one of Tamaki's 'great ideas' and it had not turned out to be a pleasurable experience.

"On second thought, I think I'll go now." Haruhi shivered, planning to exit the mansion when Kyouya's sister was not being so attentive.

"Don't be silly!" Fuyumi grabbed the brown-eyed girl's arm and laughed, under the impression that Haruhi was joking. She tugged the female out of the dining room and into the entrance to the gardens. Lightly, she pushed the reluctant girl outside and gave her a wink. Before Haruhi could protest, the door was shut behind her and she was alone.

"Oh!" Haruhi gasped as she noticed how breathtaking the garden was. She took a minute to look and then began to amble through the garden in search of Kyouya. Better to get this over with sooner than later. When she found him, he had his back to her. He seemed like he was viewing some roses with a very impatient look on his face.

"Kyouya-senpai?"

The raven-haired male turned around and widened his eyes at the sight of Haruhi. His hired staff had certainly done their job well.

"Come here." Kyouya ordered once he gained control of his thoughts. Haruhi pursed her lips but obliged anyway. The male then carefully plucked a rose from its bush and handed it to the brunette.

"On second thought, that rose certainly does not do you any justice, Haruhi. You exceed its beauty by ten times."

The girl knit her eyebrows together, ignoring the flattery. "Since when were we on a first-name basis?"

"Since you became a resident of my house." Kyouya replied calmly.

"If I remember correctly, I didn't _ask_ to be here. And I'm pretty sure this is illegal."

The male narrowed his eyes. "Given the situation, you are under my hospitality and you would do best to remember that."

The brunette crossed her arms and stared up at Kyouya. She was not about to let him intimidate her under any circumstances.

"I want some answers, Kyouya-senpai."

"Answers?" The taller boy repeated, suddenly amused by Haruhi's demands. "Very well. If you would walk with me, please."

Haruhi frowned impatiently, however complied with his wishes. At least he asked nicely. The two students walked side-by-side together through the garden for what seemed like an eternity. Frustrated by the sudden silence, the girl turned her head to ask Kyouya as to why he was not saying anything, but the expression on his face prevented her from doing so. He seemed to be deep in thought and his cold, dark eyes seemed far away.

"Do you remember the time when you asked about my siblings when we found ourselves browsing through the department store?"

Haruhi closed her eyes and tried her best to remember everything he had explained to her that day. "Yes, I remember."

"Then I am sure you recall that I mentioned how brilliant and skilled my elder brothers are and the matter of myself being the youngest."

Haruhi nodded her head, wondering how all this information was relevant to anything.

"And in order to inherit the zaibatsu, I must exceed both of them in any way possible."

"Kyouya-senpai, I fail to see how this has anything to do with me."

The male stopped walking abruptly, causing Haruhi to stop as well and raise her eyebrows in confusion.

"My father has taken an interest in you and let me be frank, Haruhi. You have also swayed my attention."

Haruhi opened her mouth to ask for clarification but did not seem to be able to locate the right words. The conversation had Haruhi feeling lost and it seemed as though she could not keep her mind up to speed. She found herself wondering about what possible merit Kyouya focusing his attention on a commoner. With no choice but to close her mouth and listen, Haruhi let him continue.

"The fees for your college tuition could be covered, you could _easily_ get into any university you desired. You would be able to become a lawyer, like your mother, Haruhi. I could give you so much, if you only did me this one favor."

"Kyouya-senpai?"

The raven-haired boy reached into his right pocket and pulled out a small, black box. Haruhi felt her body freeze up as he raised the box and opened it, revealing the most expensive looking ring that the girl had ever laid her eyes on.

"Will you marry me, Fujioka Haruhi?"

If Haruhi's eyes could have possibly gotten any wider, they had. Her hands found their way to her hips and her lips began to purse.

"Is this some sort of sick joke?" She asked, highly offended. It was one thing to tease her, but asking her to marry him and going the lengths to buy a diamond ring was not even funny.

Kyouya winced a little. "I assure you it isn't."

Haruhi; unable to locate the correct words to respond to the statement remained still and silent. The only thing she could do was lower her head and fix her eyes towards Kyouya's well-polished shoes.

"Is that a no?" The Japanese male asked, his tone low and unstable.

After fifteen seconds, Haruhi finally felt implored to respond.

"I cannot marry you, Kyouya-senpai."

"Is there something preventing you from consent?" He took another step closer.

"No—"

"Then I do not see the point in even discussing this."

"I can't marry you." Haruhi repeated firmly, staying true to her feelings. She decided to turn and walk away before anything got too out of hand however, Kyouya seized her wrist and pulled her back sharply.

"I do not believe that you are in any position to say no to me." He squeezed her wrist hard, causing Haruhi to gasp in discomfort.

"You are hurting me." The brunette struggled to free herself. "Kyouya-sempai let go!"

Haruhi pulled her arm out of his grip. She shot him one last look of disgust before running back inside the mansion as fast as her feet could take her. Kyouya felt uncontrollable rage seer through his veins. His hands were clenched so tightly that he crushed the box that was still in his hands. The ring dislodged from the inside and landed in the grass with a '_plunk'_. He did not bother to pick it up.

---

Haruhi's mind had seemed to be functioning at a million miles per hour. She had tried to make an attempt to exit the estate, but that plan was immediately terminated when she spotted Kyouya's staff standing idle at the front entrance. The staff consisted of a group of buff bald guys, so she did not even bother. The brunette contemplated about trying to leave, but she weighed the outcomes and decided to not take her chances. She was left with a few more options to take such as locating a phone, but there was the possibility of bumping into Kyouya or one of his men on the way. The male was the last person that she wanted to see at the moment, and she would much rather try to avoid him as much as she could.

Eventually, the female found herself back in her temporary bedroom sitting upright on the bed with the door locked tight. She definitely needed to sort out her thoughts if she was ever going to get through this nightmare. At times like these, she wish she had her father there to comfort her a little and give her advice that she had never asked for, but needed. Haruhi's eyes wandered over to the nightstand where she had placed the letter from her father the day before, only to discover a new, sealed envelope. She grabbed the letter and tore it open.

The content had only contained general news such as how Ranka had missed his daughter and how he was getting along fine. Haruhi was glad to hear this, but was saddened by the fact that she had no paper in which to respond. She gently cast the letter aside onto the table and began to browse through the room. In the corner, she found a bookcase filled with books that appeared to be vintage and worn. The brunette shut her eyelids and picked one out randomly. When she opened her eyes, she found that she was pleasantly surprised by the outcome. Her hands had chosen a translated compilation of the Brothers Grimm tales. Her father had told her that the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales were very popular all around the world. Even though Haruhi had never really taken an interest in fairytales, she deemed the book interesting enough to read. Carefully, she turned over the dusty front cover and opened the book. Three hours later, she was just about to read the story of Beauty and the Beast, however a knock on the door interrupted her.

"You know Haruhi, I don't appreciate getting locked out of rooms that are in my house."

The mentioned girl tensed up, closing the book she had in hand and clutching it tightly to her chest. No way in hell was she about to open the door to that despicable voice.

"Haruhi." The voice on the other end sounded softer and slightly hurt.

"I don't want to talk to you." Haruhi replied loud enough to for ears to hear and then mumbled, "ever again."

On the other side of the door Kyouya twitched, slightly annoyed. "Could you at least have the courtesy to open the door so we can have a proper conversation instead of behaving like children?"

The brunette frowned, and placed the book on top of the letter she had received from her father. She slid off of the bed and walked to the door until she was standing directly in front of it. "Perhaps I wouldn't have to lock it if you could control your temper wasn't so deplorable."

"_Perhaps,_" Kyouya repeated, clenching his fists, "if you would stop being so unreasonable…"

"Unreasonable!" Haruhi spat out in disbelief. Not only was he causing her to be holed up in her room, but also he was unjustly accusing her. "You are the one being unreasonable. Tell me, Kyouya-sempai. Is it _reasonable_—to put it simply—kidnap your classmate and cut her off from communication from her own father? Is it _reasonable_ to propose to her when she is not even finished with high school? Does that sound reasonable to you? Because it sure as hell doesn't sound like it to me."

Not only was Haruhi's rant curt, but also it was completely understandable. It took Kyouya a few seconds to control his anger and keep from breaking the door off its hinge. Instead, he readjusted his glasses and checked the time on his wristwatch. "If you are finished being rude, please unlock this door and come to dinner."

Haruhi shook her head and walked back to her temporarily owned bed. "I am not hungry."

"That isn't an option, Haruhi." Kyouya replied unusually calm.

"I said I wasn't hungry."

The Japanese male paused for a second, crossed his arms and turned his back to the door.

"Then I hope you enjoy starving." And with that, he walked away, with Haruhi listening closely to his retreating footsteps.


	5. Cold hands and lackthereof

_A/N:_

_Sorry for the wait. Let me just say that this is an early Easter present? Thank you so much to all who reviewed. You guys really make me want to finish these new chapters quicker._

_I know you all think Kyouya's being a complete ass, but Kyouya will always be Kyouya. But you will hate him less, I promise._

_I apologize for the shortness. But I needed to get this chapter out. Please excuse me for any errors._

_Happy Easter/Good Friday/Weekend, everyone!_

_

* * *

_

Haruhi remained on the guest bed in an upright position. She held her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on top of her kneecaps. As the room around her grew dimmer and more faded, she grew more agitated. Eventually she found herself pacing around the room, searching desperately for something to occupy the vast amount of free time she had been involuntarily given. Unfortunately her efforts were to no avail and she plopped herself back down onto the cushy duvet of the bed, her eyes focused dully onto the white-painted door. A section of her wished that she had just eaten dinner with Kyouya because at the very least, she would not have to suffer in isolation for the rest of the night.

'_That's it.'_ The brunette clenched her jaw and pushed herself off of the bed. _'He can't keep me in here forever.'_

Haruhi stumbled towards the door and unlocked it with a twist of her hand. She pushed it open just wide enough so that she could peek through the crack to see if any personnel were lurking in the hallways. When she deemed the quietness of the building trust-worthy, she carefully padded through the hallways since there was no rug to muffle her feet. As Haruhi ambled through the estate, she counted the number of doors as she went along.

"How many rooms do these rich bastards have?"

It was nearing midnight and Tamaki; despite the unrealistically huge amounts of energy he had wasted during the course of the day, was unable to sleep. At a whim, he bolted down the stairs and out of his mansion in his expensive pajamas. He bribed his chauffeur to drive him over to the Ootori's property. Eventually he reached Kyouya's home, however the blonde was escorted off the premises instantaneously and was advised to return during better, brighter hours. After fifteen minutes of sulking, he slid back into the limousine and requested to be taken to Haruhi's father's apartment. Once he was there, he fiercely knocked on the front door repeatedly, but stopped once a rather upset looking transvestite had wrenched the door open.

"It's terrible!" The distressed teenager pushed past the open door before it could be slammed in his face. He grabbed Ranka's oversized pajama T-shirt and shamelessly sobbed into it. "My daughter has been stolen away by an evil dark lord who wants to keep all the instant coffee to himself!"

Gritting his teeth, Haruhi's father slammed his fist into the blonde's face and then snatched him by the collar.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" He screeched, his hair standing on end. "Do you know what time it is?"

Tamaki hiccupped. "I got a call from—" hiccup "—Kyouya two days ago saying that he had Haruhi. He wouldn't even let me keep her instead."

After a couple moments, Ranka sighed and released Tamaki's now stretched out shirt.

"Aren't you going to do anything about it?" Tamaki clenched his fists; his skin was stretched tightly over his knuckles and turning white.

The father's eyes slid towards the worn carpet underneath his bare feet. "If there is one thing I have learned in all of the years I spent raising Haruhi, it is that she is the only person who can make these types of decisions for herself."

Tamaki's furrowed eyebrows softened as sympathy for the older man rushed through him. This was the man who had watched his daughter grow up completely independent, without a mother figure. The only person who could help Haruhi was herself.

Two hours later, Ranka had drunk himself to hysterics and Tamaki was dangerously emotional.

"Fujioka-san." The blonde wept, clinging onto the other man once more. "I'll get Haruhi back and make her a princess."

Ranka made a disgusted face, unsteadily pointed a finger at the heir and laughed hysterically. "How can you do that? My daughter only marries princes and not frogs."

Tamaki understood the complete opposite of what Ranka was joking about and beamed up at him.

"You really think I'm a prince? Of course, I couldn't be one of them. But then again, I am rich, handsome, and I also have flawless skin. However you should not call Kyouya a frog." The blonde crossed his arms. "He's not completely unattractive."

Haruhi's father stared blankly at Tamaki before grabbing him by the collar and hauling him towards the door.

"Youuu moron." He slurred, tossing him out of the apartment into light rain that had began to come down. "Leave and don't bother my daughter!"

At this point, Tamaki glumly returned to his own place of residence and restlessly paced in circles, occasionally pausing to devise a plan by bouncing ideas off of his teddy bear Kuma-chan.

After about fifteen minutes of wandering, Haruhi stopped in front of a door with a small placard above the doorknob. It read; _Kyouya _Ootori. An immense idiotic curiosity overcame her rationalization and she reached for the handle, twisting it. She let go of it and pushed the door open slightly. However, out of nowhere a hand shot out from behind her and slammed the door shut quickly. The brunette jumped and whipped around automatically.

"Kyouya-senpai—!" She yelped to the looming figure above her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Kyouya's tone was low and bitter.

"I—" Haruhi began but was silenced due to the bespectacled male grabbing her shoulders and pressing her against the door she had attempted to open a few seconds earlier

"Do you think you can just refuse everything I offer and then sneak around as you please?"

The petite teenager attempted pushing against Kyouya to get him off of her, but he was not budging.

"I will not tolerate such behavior towards me." She stated, her voice gaining confidence. "You can't keep losing your temper like this."

Kyouya shut his eyes tightly. "You don't get it, do you?"

"Get what, Kyouya-senpai? There isn't much to understand."

His eyes flew open and he gripped Haruhi's shoulders tighter. "How is it that you can be so dense?" He shouted, shaking her harshly. She looked up at him questioningly in response. Unwanted silence hung thick in the air for a few moments before Haruhi broke it with one sentence that would change the course of the whole night.

"Senpai, I would appreciate it if you left me alone."

'_Alone?'_ Kyouya thought, a little panicked. He could decipher that sentence in so many ways, and he wanted none of those ways to happen.

Without thinking, he tightened his grip on Haruhi, leaned down, and sealed his lips firmly against hers. The brunette stiffened for a moment in complete shock, and then gained her strength back, pushing at his chest with all the force that she could muster up. There was nothing gentle about the kiss. It was searing, ardent, and assertive; so much that even Haruhi began to lose her willpower to fight back. With one final push, she forced him off of her, clasping her hands to her mouth. They were both breathing heavily, attempting to assess the current situation, but neither of them could come to a proper conclusion.

Infuriated, Haruhi took her hand away from her mouth, bringing it back sharply and slapping Kyouya right across the face. Her eyebrows knit together and she clenched her fists.

"Don't you _ever_ touch me again." She snapped before pushing him hard one more time and bolting down the hallway. Kyouya remained standing there, surprised and unmoving.

She ran as fast as she could, passing various butlers and maids who did not even give her a second glance. The brunette did not stop until she was at the front door, which she pushed open carelessly and ran into the pouring rain. She walked off the property, damp and shivering. Haruhi rubbed her wet arms in attempt to warm them, but the cold rain kept hitting her sharply, leaving a stinging cold feeling. Low growls of thunder threateningly rolled overhead.

'_Wonderful.'_ She thought bitterly, looking around for some sort of shelter besides the Ootori mansion. A sharp crack of lightening caused Haruhi's legs to buckle underneath her, and she fell to the ground, whimpering and covering her head. It was going to be a long night.


End file.
